The invention relates to an apparatus and a method for examining a reflective surface, in particular one that is curved inward, with a camera having an objective and with a lamp; the camera can be aimed at the inside of the curved surface, and the lamp can be located such that light emitted by the lamp is reflected from the inside of the curved surface into the camera.
By lighting and taking pictures of surfaces, it is possible to recognize structures on the surfaces by means of conventional image evaluation methods connected to the optical cameras. If weak structures on reflective curved surfaces are to be made visible, the lighting and optical arrangements employed until now, such as lighting in the form of a bright and/or dark field that shines either diffusely or in an aimed way, do not lead to sufficient contrast for simple image evaluation. Other examination methods, such as white-light interferometry or a confocal measuring system, conversely, are complicated, expensive, and too slow in their examination speed.
It is therefore the object of the invention to propose a possible way of examining curved surfaces, which with a structurally simple construction achieves adequate contrast of the surface to be examined.